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Wednesday, February 8, 2012

Inspiration and Perspiration

This week's Sisterhood of the Traveling Blog question comes from Deb Salisbury who asks:

What type of book do you read for writing inspiration, and why? Do you
read fiction or non-fiction, and what genres? Mysteries and YA, or
archeology and astronomy?

Good question Deb! I guess I need different kinds of inspiration.

For book ideas?Recently, I read through a copy of Scientific American and got so many new sci-fi ideas. I love mooching off the latest technology! The Little House books by Laura Ingalls inspired my second novel about a kick-ass, flint-lock rifle-shooting gal in the upper Mississippi territories. I wanted to take a smart, strong frontier girl and amp her up a notch. Someday I'll revive Polly Sterling out of that shelved novel.

But truthfully? Most of my ideas don't usually come from books or magazines. I have a running
fascination with the human body, disease, mortality, and fertility that keep cropping up as themes in my writing and poetry.

For writing style and plotting? YA books for sure. When I'm sad that I've hit the last page, or have to reread a paragraph just so I can turn of words around in my brain again...*sigh* These books make me sweatand work harder (No inspiration, no perspiration!). Here's a teeny, tiny list of books and how they inspired me:

The Hunger Games: Make every sentence earn its existence. There is no superfluous fluff in there.Harry Potter: Keep the MC's goal very clear and the reader desperate for a resolution. (JK should have renamed the book "That-Which-Cannot-Be-Put-Down")The Scorpio Races: Flawless world building. Loved her non-stagnant, lyrical prose.
There are so many other books that inspire me (as well as many that have taught me what I don't want to do), but then this post would be waaaaay too long.

Yes, I agree. I get inspired so much from reading authors like the ones you mentioned. And reading ones that don't work as well that show how things can be better. I find as I grow as a writer I learn even more from the books I read.

Anything by Lloyd Alexander or Diana Wynne Jones. I go back to those two all the time for that peculiar blend of humor and deep truth.

Wrede and Stevermer's Cecy and Kate books have also been a great inspiration for me, in how they so seamlessly blend reality and magic into a remarkably believable world. Plus, they're a lot of fun, which is always great for starting the writing juices flowing!

I really don't know now to answer that. I just read so much, and so much inspires me in different ways. Sometimes, an author's humor like the book I just finished. Sometimes the prose (also like the book I just finished). Sometimes, if it's a nonfiction, it'll give me ideas. YA may give me hope for our youth...or make me fear for our youth and give ideas. Just...reading in general. I don't read stuff I can't get into, so if I'm into it, it's going to inspire me in some way.

The Chronicles of Narnia were some of the most influential books to me growing up. Nowadays, there are all sorts of stories, but I tend to be drawn to speculative fiction books. Or books that tug on my heartstrings and make me laugh in there too.

But usually when I want inspiration, I try to read outside the genres I write. I try to pay attention to the strengths of those other genres and think about how to incorporate those strengths into what I write.

When I need inspiration, I reread parts of favorites. Amazing writing inspires me as much as it can sometimes depress me. Haha. I totally agree about your book examples.

Lately, the books that have inspired me are THE SCORPIO RACES (for flawless, effortless world-building and atmosphere setting), DAUGHTER OF SMOKE AND BONE (for lyrical writing and wildly imaginative world and myth-building), and THE SPACE BETWEEN (for complex characterization - humanizing non-humans and walking the delicate line between good/bad, broken/saved, love/loss).

I just read a YA contemporary from a few years ago, Right Behind You, by Gail Giles, and it really inspired me. I read it one night!~ I definitely plan to go back and analyze how the author put it together!

No one book has inspired me. Whenever I read gorgeous writing or a story that shines in some way, I am inspired. It's always a treat. Oh, and I loved The Scorpio Races, too. Flawless word building is right.

Markus Zusak's "The Book Thief" is incredibly inspiring. Sometimes I'll just turn to a random page, and every sentence is so unique and gorgeous. I could live ten lifetimes and never write like that...

Great post I love Patrick Ness' trilogy, it is fast paced and gripping througout.

This next suggestion isn't YA but I so love Lori lansen's The Wife's Tale simply because she seems to break all the rules in How Not to Write a Novel and still writes a compelling read. The description on first page is so evocative.

This may actually be opposite of what your talking about. I read a book by MARY HIGGINS CLARK, but I don't remember the title of the book. I just remember thinking to myself after I finished it..."this is a relatively famous author, and I know I can write better than this!"

There are a lot of books that inspire me, everything from my WIP genre to books on the craft. I need to lobby for more reading hours in the day. Looking forward to reading about Polly when you bring her around. :)

Harry Potter is a wonderful example of how to do a series. I think The Hunger Games is a perfect example of how not to do a series. Each book got worse for me. That's inspiration too. I can figure out what went wrong, so I know how I would do things differently. Honestly, I'm shocked about the hype. When the first book is a best book, it makes me have zero interest in seeing the movie.

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